‘“We’re vastly improved in a lot of areas, but we’re going to have a lot of tests coming up,” said Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller, who won his fourth straight decision. “It only gets harder during the year, and we can’t just accept that this is good hockey we’re playing. We have to keep going.”’

‘It’s proof Ruff has confidence in the pair, confidence he didn’t have last year. It’s easy to see why. Campbell entered the game against the Capitals with a team-high 13 assists, while Spacek led the blue-liners with five goals despite missing eight games with a shoulder injury. They were a combined plus-3.’

‘Buffalo reclaimed the lead at the 8:07 mark of the second. Daniel Paille stole the puck between the circles and quickly passed it to Hecht, who was perched in front of Kolzig. Hecht snapped a wrister that beat Kolzig on the stick-side.’

‘Darkest Before Dawn: Lindy Ruff said after the second game of the season that the Sabres had some players who were “trying to find their way.” After the seventh game, a loss in Montreal, he said his team might even need another 15-20 games to get it together. Turns out the Sabres DID need some time to figure out who they were.’

'Sekera receives his second NHL recall of the season after registering one goal and five assists for six points in 10 games with the Amerks. With Buffalo, the Bojnice, Slovakia, native has one assist and six penalty minutes (PIM) in 11 games. Sekera is expected to dress in tonight’s National Hockey League contest against the Washington Capitals.'

'“Winning’s a whole different attitude and atmosphere,” Sabres forward Andrew Peters said. “It’s great to be back in a place where we should have been from the start. I think we’re still not satisfied with where we are. It’s just a start, hopefully.”'

‘“I just felt comfortable out there,” he said. “I didn’t know that it was going to be a shutout, but I knew that I was going to play a solid game. But the guys were so good in front of me that it was a pleasure to be there.”’

‘“I’m trying to focus more on my game,” Miller said. “Early in the season, I was probably too worried about what everybody else was trying to do, trying to be bigger than my role. I was trying to do too many things at once. I can’t be a captain-type leader and talk to guys at all times. I have to go out and just do my job.”’